Utah St downs Air Force 71-49 behind Merrill, McEwen

Jan 25, 2018, 03:56 am

LOGAN, Utah -- Sam Merrill scored 21 points with five 3-pointers, Koby McEwen added 20 points, and Utah State opened the second half with a big run to beat Air Force 71-49 on Wednesday night, ending a four-game skid.

Merrill scored eight points in a 15-4 run and the Aggies pulled ahead 44-29, then led by 20 on Diogo Brito's layup with 7:10 to play. Merrill's fifth 3 made it 62-41 with 5:21 left and the Aggies rolled.

Air Force led briefly, then tied it at 20 on Trevor Lyons' jumper, but Alex Dargenton's free throws sparked a 10-5 run and Utah State led 29-25 at halftime after holding the Falcons to 33.3 percent shooting, including 1 of 15 from 3.

Quinn Taylor scored 13 points for the Aggies (11-11, 4-5 Mountain West Conference), who are 10-0 at home.

Ryan Swan led the Falcons (8-11, 2-5) with 10 points.